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pictured: Dirk Nowitzki
(11/2/04) The NBA is two different leagues, racially and stylistically. The Western Conference has many more white players than the Eastern Conference, and all the league’s white stars and emerging stars are in the West with the exception of Kirk Hinrich of Chicago. The Eastern Conference is still predominantly black. The West plays a more uptempo, exciting game, while the East is characterized by low-scoring snoozefests marked by poor fundamentals and indifferent play.
While close to 90 percent of the starters in the NBA in recent years have been black, the number of white starters is starting to grow. Only 9 of the East’s 75 starters are white, but 22 of the West’s are, meaning that just short of 30% of the starters in the Western Conference are white to start the 2004-’05 season(29.3%). The West also is well ahead of the East when it comes to white reserves
